The aerospace industry has been an important part of the Fort Worth economy since the late 1930s. From General Dynamics turned Lockheed turned Lockheed Martin, Carswell Air Force Base, Bell Helicopters and American Airlines, the aeronautics industry has served to bring Fort Worth to the forefront of technology, industry and peripherally cultivated a culture unlike any other which unites old fashioned cowboys and superior orchestras and theaters including the Fort Worth Symphony which performs at the Bass Performance Hall.
Lockheed Martin was founded in 1912 and today employs more than 135,000 people in 45 states and various countries around the world. Major developments have included the Trident missile, P-3 Orion, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-22 Raptor, F-35 Lightning II, C-130 Hercules, A-4AR Fightinghawk as well as various satellites, joint ventures, and shuttle components. Fort Worth has seen production of the Hawker Hurricane (1937), Spitfire (1940), Vought F4U Corsair (1940), Grumman Hellcat (1943), Lockheed P-38 (1943), Vought F-8 Crusader (1952), Lockheed F-104 Starfighter (1954), Grumman A-6 Intruder (1960), General Dynamics F-111 (1964), Tornado (1972), Northrop F-5 Tiger (1972), Grumman F-14 Tomcat (1970), Lockheed F-111 Nighthawk (1981), McDonnell Douglas A-4 (1989).
|